KAAPO KAHKONEN NAMED CCM/AHL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Nov 19, 2018The American Hockey League announced today that Iowa Wild goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen has been selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending November 18, 2018. Kahkonen is the fourth Iowa Wild player in team history to receive Player of the Week honors and the first since 2016.
Kahkonen was perfect in his two starts last week, stopping all 58 shots he faced while helping the Wild move into first place in the Central Division.
With Iowa hosting Milwaukee for a pair of games at Wells Fargo Arena, Kahkonen got the call on Wednesday night and made 20 saves to backstop the Wild to a 3-0 victory. Then on Friday, Kahkonen stopped 38 shots in Iowa’s 6-0 win over the Admirals for his second shutout of the week and his third in a row overall; Kahkonen has not allowed a goal in his last 207:55 of work, a franchise record.
A fourth-round pick by the Minnesota Wild in the 2014 NHL Draft, Kahkonen has a record of 4-1-0 in his five appearances with Iowa this season, allowing a total of four goals on 144 shots and currently leading the AHL in goals-against average (0.79), save percentage (.972) and shutouts (three). The 22-year-old native of Helsinki, Finland, played the last three seasons in the Finnish Elite League and won a gold medal playing for Finland at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship.
In recognition of being named the CCM/AHL Player of the Week, Kahkonen will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Wild home game.
The Iowa Wild 2018-19 season is presented by Mercy Medical Center and runs from October through April. For more information, please contact the Wild office by calling 515-564-8700 or by visiting www.iowawild.com.